Sheet-stacking mechanism



June 26, 1923. M. FINE SHEET STACKINGMECHANISM 4 sheets-sheet I INVENT.Il l. III-ll I MW M ATTORNEYS B. M. FI NE SHEET. STACKING MECHANISMJune 26, 1923.

Filed oct v. 1921* 4 Sheet s-Shet 2 ATTORNEYS- Ill-l llll lll B. M. FINESHEET STACKINGMECHANISM June 26, 1923.

4 Sheets-Sheet'S Filed Oct.

INVENTOR IIIIIIIIII'IIYI $5 Q n wuug III J1me 26. 1923.

B. M. FINE SHEET STACKING MECHANISM Filed Oct. 17 {1921 4 Sheets-Sheet 4filwl INVENTOR i minnwzvs BY- 0 aim/M Patented June 26, 1923.

BEF'NARD terms, or nnrrronn TOWNSHIP, GLOUCESTER coU'N'rY, New JERSEY,ASSIGNQR'TO' SAMUEL M. LANGSTQN COMPANY, or CAMDEN, NEW JERSEY, a con-qPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

sHEE'r-sriioKING MECHANISM.

' Application filed October 17, 1921. .SeriaI No. 508,082.

T all 14:71pm, it may @mm.-' T

Be it known that I, BERNARD M. FINE, a citizen'of the United States, andresident .of Deptford Township, inthe county of- Gloucester and State ofNew Jersey, have invented certainnew and useful Improve- -ments in"Sheet-Stacking Mechanism, 7 of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates 'to machines for the stacking or piling ofmaterial, and more particularly to sheet material or sections cut from acontinuously advancing sheet. My

" improved machine is designed to cute con tinuously' advancing sheetinto sections, ad-

. Vance the sections at-a1 faster rate than that of. the travel of thebody of the sheet so as to space the sections apart, and to deliver the3 1 sections in predetermined numbers first to one stacking mechanismand then to another,

so that while one stack is being built up another may berem'oved,and'.the parts restored to proper position for beginning a newstack.

One of the main objects of my invention is to'so design, arrange andconstruct the parts that every high speed operation is possihleaIid-accurate stacking is secured with all of the'stacks containing thesame number-- -of sheets or sections. I do not wish to be limited,to theuse of any particular kind of sheet material, although certain featuresof the construction'hereinafter described have been designed forhandling sheet material of the samegeneral properties as that employedin the manufacture ofcom'position shingles.-

7 Among theiimportant features and objects of my invention are thecomplete and accurate severing of the sheet into sections withoutinterfering with the uniform and continuous advancement of the-sheet,the supporting and conveying of the sectionsfrom the cut off mechanismto the feed rolls, the advancing of each, section at a faster speed thanthat of the body immediatelyupon its severance, the guiding or directingof the sections'to separate-conveyors, the reversing of thepositioh ofthe guidingmeans after-a predetermined number of sheets have beendelivered toaconveyoigthe automatic control' of the position-of theconveymg'means in respect'to the top of the stack, and the maintenanceof proper'operative condition of the conveyor in its different adjustedpost tions. These and various other features will be pointed out moreparticularly in connecbroken away,

tion with the following detailed description of one of many forms whichmy invention may assume. I do not wish to be limited to the-specificform illustrated, except in so far as itis defined in the appendedclaims.

Theclaims involving the cutter mechanism have been transferred to adivisional application Serial In the accompanying drawings 1- Fig. 1 isa vertical longitudinal section of a portion of a machine-embodying myinven-' tion,

of the machine shown in Fig.1, parts being Fig.2 is a top plan view ofthe portion's No. 569,396, filed June 19th, 3

Fig. 3 is a sectioni similar to Fig; 1, but

showing the parts at the left of those shown in Fig. l,

Fig. 4' is a transverse section looking in the direction of the arrow A:of Fig. 3,

Fig. 5 is a transverse section looking in the direction of thearrow 5 ofFig. 1,

Fig. 6 is a side elevation of the portion of the machine at the righthand side of Fig.1,

is a sectional detail on the line 7-7 and in many respects independentof any particular mechanism forcutting the sheet transversely intosections.

So far as certain features of the invention are concerned, it ispreferable, if: not essen tial, that the cut oil mechanism be of such atype that. it does not interfere with the continuous and uniformdelivery of sheet material. This is preferably accomplished by employinga cut oif mechanism which will more back and forth in the generaldirection of travel of thesheen'and will out;

while traveling with the sheet and at ap n'oximately'the same speed. Apreferred cut off mechanism is that illustrated and claimed in theLangston Patent 1,359,076,

. ,i. ens. r

"farms u a m d to swing about" a Stat10n 10;

such. a out, off. mechanism and tobe had to said. patent for a rec mptedisclos'ureof the construcration; -The cut off mechanism terfjltr'mounted on a translf wliich latter, is arried by ary. axis 135Asecond cutter l i 'is carried by another transverse beam 15, whichlatter is cagrried'byarms 1.6 pivoted to the arms-12f The cutjoifmechanism is operated by .a crank connected to the ends of the armsflfi' -s'o as to give-the cutter 10 a back and forth movement in thegeneral directionbfptravel of: the material, and an ape proximatelyelliptical movement of the cutter 14 andi-ntersecting the path ofmovement of-the cutter during the movement of the latter with thematerial.

Any suitablemeans may be employed for continuously and uniformlyadvancing the sheet between said cutters in the'direction of the arrow.Merely for purposes of illustration I have shown, in Fig. 9, a pair ofdriven feed rolls 17 18 for this purpose.

The advancing end of the sheet enters between a pairof superposed feedrolls 19-20 spaced just beyond the limiting position of the cut offmechanism. .The lower'feed roll 20 is made up ofa series of axiallyspaced material gripping or engaging portions 21 (see Fig. 2) andbetweenthese portions 21 there are intermediate portions 22 of reduced diameterand preferably in the form of idler rolls free to rotate in eitherdirection in respect to the sheet-engaging pertions 21. Theseidler'rolls maybe in the form of sleeves or collars mounted onrollerbearings. 4

cutter and the feed rolls 19-920, for guiding the sheet -to these rolls,preventingthe end from dropping down between thecutter and rolls and foracting as conveyors, I provide a plurality of flexible strips or belts23. Thesesmay each havebne end-secured to the cutter 10 or thesupporting beam of 22 and may extend between the feed rolls 1920'withoutengagingwiththe upperfeed I provide means for keeping these belts,

' sion.

the latter, and each may be of a width sub stantially equal' to thewidth of the idlers roll 19. As the two feed rolls rotate aboutstationary axes and the cutter is movable back and forth in respect tothese feed rolls,

conveyors or supports taut, orunder ten- Such means mayinc-lude' aseries of springs 24 each secured to the end of its corresponding beltsection, and to anadjusting and securing connection 25. on the base orother stationary part of. the machine.

Thus, as the cutter 10 moves back and forth the portions of the belts 23between the cutter and the feed rolls will remainftaut and" the beltswilllmove back-'and-fortli between the [feed rolls b y the rotation(if-1t eidlers other. This movement. will not interfere 22, first intonedirection -"and fthexifin thfi 7 o with the proper gripping andadvancing of iv 1 the material between thefeedroll 19 and the portions21 of the lower feed roll. Fur

thermore, the cut off mechanism"and the' feed, rollsrare so positionedin respect to each otheranct thecut mechanism v oper ates tomakesections of suehilength'jthat the advancing end of the .sheetgentersbetween the feed 'roll' l 9 20 beforethe'jcuttingaction takes place,andi.therefore theflreturn movement of the cutter and belts doesflnotintertote with the e0ntinuoi1s advancement of the cut off sections afterthey have. entered between the fed'r'olls 19-20, v f line length i'seslittingef the sheet has 'takenplace and the cut i 'oiffsectionthereffore'of a-singlej piece ot-"full width ofjthe sheet, the number,width and spacing-of the belts 23 is comparativelyunimportant. In "thatcase it is; only' essential thattherebe enough of these be1t s,.;andthat theybe of such widthjas will" properly support the sheetbetweenjthe cutter and tlie fe'edrolls.

If the sheetQbe slitted lengthwise'into strips before the cutoff actiontakes place, the cut off section will include a plurality of separateplaces A, and in that event-the belts 23 should be properly spaced inrespect to theseseparate pieces. In the manufacture of compositionshingles it is customary; to cut notches a at the corners of theshingles,

as indicated in Fig. 2, and these notches may be cut even, -though thesheet is not slitted lengthwise to make individual shingl'es. If anysuch portion of the sheet is i cut therefrom either in the making ofshinor supporting the materialbetween the "thatthe belts 23 be .sopositioned that the small pieces may fall from the cut off section glesor any other articles, it is preferable and between adjacent belts 23.As shown, the belts 23 are sopositioned as to .corre-I spond in number;to the shingles A, and

each belt comes intermediate the side edges of auc'orresponding shinglesoth-at {the notchesa come between adj acentbelts.

Beyondthe feed rolls 19-20 are another pair of superposed feed rolls 27.28 which" receive the out. as sections from the. feed rolls 19- 20.clghe sections may be guided across'from one pair of feed rolls toth'eother on a supporting platform '29, or in any other suitable manner,but'the two pairs of rolls are preferably so spaced in respect to eachother than the sheet sections e'nter between the rolls 27 and 28beforet'hey leave the rolls 19-20. In order. tofacilitate the withanother, I prooperation of the stacking. mechanism and prevent thepossibility of one section over-c .lapping or interferin .vide means.whereby the space between'sucoessiveisections at the transverse cut is'g opened up by agseparating of the cut off sections; This isaccomplishedbyoperating the; feed rolls 27-28 at a higher speed, of

surface travel than that of the rate of travel of the body of the sheet,determined 'for instance, by the speed of surface travel of the grindingaction of them on thematerial and to' prevent them from retarding themovement of the cut off sections.- The driving mechanism is shown asincluding a drive chain operated from thesame source of power as thatwhich advances the body of the sheet. This chain engages a sprocket 31on the shaft 32 of the feed roll 28.: This shaft has a" gear meshingwith the gear 33 ofthe upper feed roll 27' so as to drive the. two rollsat the same surface speed. The

I shaft'32 also has a gear 34 meshing with an intermediate gear 35transmitting power to a gear 36 on the-shaft 37 of the lower feed to theshaft 37 but is connected thereto by a suitable slip friction clutch.One form which this clutch may assume is illustrated .in 7. The gear 36has an annular flange the gear 36 .to press the disks together to give38 inclosing a multiple disk clutch, each alternate disk being heldagainst rotation in respect to the flange and the remaining disks beingheld against rotation in respect to the shaft. A collar 39 is slidableon the shaft and carriers push rods 40 projecting through the desiredfrictional resistance and capa-. bility of slipping. The pressure may beaccurately adjusted for instance by means of a yoke arm 41 pivoted to abracket 42 on the frame of the machine and engaging trunnions on thecollar 39. A rod 43 engages this arm and carries a hand wheel 44 andspring 45 so that by rotation of the hand wheel any desired resilientpressure may be appliedto when the resistance exceeds the predeterminedamount. The shaft 27 has agear 46 meshing with a gear 47 on the shaft ofthe upper roll 19. The gear transmission ratio is such that when thereis no slipping in the clutch the feedrolls 19-20 will travel With thesame surface speed as the feed rolls 2728. this speed-being materiallyhigher than that at which the sheet of uncut material is advanced. Thefriction of the clutch is so adjusted that as soon as the ad vancing endof the sheetenters between the rolls 1920. the slipping takes place inthe the main body of the sheet offers to an inand then slippingof theclutch may terminate and the rolls 19 20wi-ll immediately creaseinspeed. I The instai t that tliecut oil action takes place thisresistance terminates,

increase their speed to that" offthe rolls 27 -28. 'Thus, when the outoff sectionenters between the rolls 27-1-28 it will he traveling atthejsurfacesp'eed of-the latter and theref-will be no slipping of thesheet ma' terial between these rolls... The rolls 19.-20

rotate-at'one'speedwhile' engaging with the sheet before the end 'is cutoff, and,rotate at 'a higher speed as soon as the section is cut ofi.Thus-the instant that the cut off action takes place, the cut-foilsection jumps forward to widen the gap'between it and the advancing endfor v.thefnex't successive sec-i tion." The upper feed'rolls 1 9 and 27are preferably mounted for such vertical movevariations in thickness ofthe sheet. shown, the shaft of the upper roll 19- is mounted in'a pairof pivoted arms 48, and

the shaft of the roll 27 is mounted in a pair of pivoted arms 49. roll20. The gear 36 is not directly keyed My improved machine particularlydesigned for high speed operation'and buildingup stacks each containinga predetermined number of sheets. To accomplish .ment as is necessary totake. care of the this object I provide two separate stack supports anddeliver apredetermined number of sheets to one stack and then the-samenumber to the other stack, thus providing time for the operator toremove one and to starting position while the other stack.

1 is being piled up. w The delivery mechanism includes two conveyors5.051, each preferably in the fornrofIa set of endless belts.

Means are provided for guiding the sheets to one conveyor for apredetermined interval and then to the other conveyor for a similarinterval. The feed roll 28 pref-I erably serves asone of thesupportingrollers for the conveyor belts 51; and a second pair of feed rolls 5253are provided, the lower one 52, serving as oneof the supporting rollersfor the conveyor belts 50.

The feed rolls '5253 are disposed beyond the rolls 27-28 in the generaldirection. of travel of the material; and preferably at' a slightlyhigher elevation. The conveyor 'belts 50 are arranged above the conveyorbelts 51, and preferably the two diverge,

the former slightly inclined upwardly,'and

trated as a plate 54 secured to a pivot 55.

just in advance of the line of tangency of permit the delivery mechanismto return theiteedi iillsifii a3; iind' ;.'5 6 i'proje'cti g throughbetweenthef-rolls 27 ""28 ower roll 26 hasaseriespf spaced 4 reduceddiameter, for receiving 271 fingjeig se-jiisro ct {rim the passagesbetween the rolls formed 'by these 1 duced-diameteri-vportions"'57-.and58, and vsuch lengthfthat r sdpositiondjand jofr renting fingers:

half of. it and between adjacent-flicks there "'ons'57fl'of reduceddiam; g with corresponding. .p'or- 1 the upper v were'd {and-:- epmeeither bove; o'r jbelpw the ine'of tan-gency ofi t h'ematerial;engagingpoflions-z-df the; two {rolls 27- 28;v When 'tli'e"guide plate 54 n s g ':rsa -f t oiwer po i ns I as. indicatedfinFigfLfall {of .the out 01i.

. pivotalsupport forthe latter.

" mepe v'ersing 'thefposition the 7 guide eachhalf revolutionot theshaftg' Asshown, v the shafticarries a*cam;disk havingone 7-2 normallytends "to lift the rod .71---' an *sections erfsheet's' asjjtheypass.,between"the g "surface of the plate {to the-feed rolls and willlloe; carried away, by thei conveyon.

' limiting positiongin other words; its raised position, asi'shown FigIS, the endE of the fingers comes'abdve the line of -'tangenc v' and-allQmh eut e sections or sheets will I pass beneath the-Yjguide plate 5.4fandwilt be carried iaf'wa'y the lower conveyor 51};

The'feedfrolls are. driven with substantially the same surface speed asthe rolls- 27 28, and byany suitable driving iiicha nism. Asshown, theshaft 32; of the-lower;

feed roll 28 has" a sprocket transmitting power through a 1 chain '60"to-"a? sprocket on the shaft-of: the lower roll 52 The upper roll 53.'has its shaft mounted in pivoted arms 61 to permit-of variation in thethickness of the f materialpassing --bet-we en, the rolls and the.tworolls? haveiintermeshin'ggears,

24 3; r-"driving the upper P011163 So faras the operation isconcerned,-v the upper conveyor might b *a. single. belt of the. d875siredj w idth, but 'thi'sqis not .necessary, ,and- 7 preferably. aplurality of narrow belts are. 1 employed; cachfengaging a corresponding4 reducedldiameterportion of theroll52. To

' Initf 'the' proper operation of the fingers 5Q he lowerconvevm 5lismade up of the :se'pa t-space'dl'belts. "I As-"previously no ted,the,b'elts 23' are so lposjitione'd thatl'they come intermediate oftheedgeslof the separateypieces of the" cut 7 V 'ection, so vthatoutputs-portions may "fall-vbetween; Preferably thebelts. 50-51 off. as

..a1e arranged alternately t ogthe'. belts 23.

ther-w'ords. they are so spaced that each p led @301. "shingle-A issupported'alongits 'twofopposite edges. asxillustrated in Fig. 2.

Thisprevents-the side edges from curling down *duringthe, comparativelylonger run {5 alongthese conveyors. For controllingnd ,r' of the guide'plate 54 I provide acontroltimin g the operation shaft .64.;withcontrolling mechanism for rey been built up to the desired height. Ach"jacent to the support 74 thereis a carriage 76 mounted for verticalmovement, and hav-.

ingsa pair of rollers 7778, the lower of .which carries thecorresponding, conveyor belt 51. The carriage 76 is vertically mov- 54'to' ts 'upperipos itionr as shown 3 in" Fig. 8,

andthe 'cut off sections or sheets may pass beneath-the late. --;Thus,ftheguide plate is T positively he d in a lowered positiom and the emer tes. t a p'a i fifrom theother'fhal ii by shoulder or inc1i 1d'portionsfit .I The'motioni-maybeltransihittedq- I; 7 1 t -mm I e geiep1e e em var 1 ous different-ways, that'illustrated incl' i'ding a,vpivoted lever: 67 mounted to en age "the working face of the cam, andconnected by a flink 68,to' abell crank lever 69.; The. Ilatter-is'jcohhecteid-;byja rod 'ZOto an arm-71 5 "connected-t0.the-guide plate 5'4 or ito' e 1 coil sprin I Q thuls hold the operatingend of the lever 67* againstlthe cam; The c am,,d)1ring a half;reyolution;holds'therod' down and kee s the 'ide 54 in'it'sglowermostposition. Vhen to y spring acts only to hold'it in raised positionWllflll'lil is not supporting sheets passing over it.- v v There aretwo'separate stacking Ine'chanisms for the two conveyors 50and 51$ Forthe weight of any the .p'resentxl will consider only 'thestackirigmechanism for the conveyor 5'1. This includes a support-upon whichtheshee'ts may be stacked and means for'varying the relative elevationofthe support and the con-' veyor as the stack increases in height. ThisI} variation in elevation-might be accomplished by a gradual lowering ofthe stack support,

forby a gradual risingof the outer end of the conveyor. As' shown, thestack support is in the form of a platform '74 vhich may be laterallymovable intoand out of operaltive position On a transverse guide of somecharacter. That illustrated includes aseries of rollers along which theplatform 74 move with its load when the stack has able on aframe part 79and tilting-or irregular movement may be prevented by providing theframe part with apair of station'- ary rack. bars 80 meshing withpinions 81 I keyed to a transverse shaft 82 mounted ;on

the carriage. The same shaftbi which op- .eratesito control the guide54: also acts for the raising and lowering of the carriage. As shown,the shaft is provlded with a cam 83 engaging with an anti-frictionroller 84 on the carriage. The cam is-of such form' that during a halfrevolution of the shaft 64; the carriage is raised at a slow and uniformrate and is lowered during the remaining half revolution of the shaft.

The difference inmaximum and minimum radii .of the cam is equal to theheight of .th'e'stack, which it is desired to build up on the platform74, and the curvature of the ca-ni and speed of rotation of the shaft 61I sion.

-ically operating belt tighteners which are preferably in the form ofrollers 85, each is such in respect to the thickness of thematerial-operated uponthat the carriage will rise a'distance' equal tothe thickness of each operation of the 'cut off more .nearly horizontaland therefore would tend to loosen the belts or reduce their ten- Toprevent this I provide automatmounted' to engage with its correspondingbelt 51, and each carried by a lever 86 piv ted on the "carriage. Eachlever is pivoted Y intermediate of its ends and the end oppositeto theroller' 85 is connected to some stationary part of the machine by aspring 87. As the carriage rises the fulcrum of the lever'rises and thespring acts with gradually increasing force to hold the rollers 85against their corresponding belts-and keep the belts properly taut atall times.

The sheets, as delivered by the conveyor 51 between thexrolls 77' and 78are ordinarily traveling at fairly high speed and even after leaving-therolls tend to continue in the same general direction. For in uringthe'building up of an even and regular stack, a stop 90 forming a backwall against which the sheets may abut, is provided. This may be carriedby a pair of supporting rods 91, and

be adjusted toward and from the end of the conveyor in accordance withthe length of the sheets being pile-d. The carriage also preferablycarries friction means tending to slow down the speed of the sheets asthey pass on to the stack, and prevent any return movement afterreaching the stop 90. This is shown as a pair of transversely extending'brushes9293 carried by a frame 94 pivoted on the carriage and movableupwardly with the latter. The brushes are inclined in the direction oftravel of the shafts so that they effectively prevent the sheets frombounding back from the stop 90. r

The stacking mechanism for the conveyor 50 may be substantiallyidentical with that for the conveyor 51 except that the conveyor 50extends over or above the stacking mechanism of the conveyor 51 andtherefore the frame part 7 9 of one stack mechanism is made low, and theframe part 79 of the other stack mechanism (see Figs. 3 and 4) is madecomparatively high. The shaft 64: has a second cam 83 similar to the cam83 but with its high part diametrically opposite to that of the cam 83so that it acts to lower the carriage 76 While the cam 83 is raising thecarriage 76. As the two cams 83 and 83 are mounted on the same shaft,the carriage 76 may differ somewhat in design from the carriage 76 so asto space the rollers 7 7, 78 to a greater distance above the roller 84*.The frame part 79 may serve as the supportfor the stop 90 and mayalsocarry rods 91 for supporting the stop 90. Otherwise the construction ofthe stacking mechanism of the conyeyor 50 may be substan tially the sameas that for the conveyor 51. The shaft 64 may be rotated at the properspeed, dependent upon the thickness of the sheet material and themaximum difference in elevation produced by the cams 83 and 83 Thedriving mechanism for the shaft should be connected to or properly timedin respect to the operating. mechanism for the J sheet feeding and cutoff mechanism.

As shown, the shaft 64; has a worm wheel 96 -meshi-ng with a worm 97driven by a chain 98 and sprocket 99. The driving mechanism for thechainmay extend to the same driving mechanism that operates the chainHaving thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is '1. A machine of the class described, in-

cluding two spaced pairs of superposed feed rolls, the lower roll ofeach pair having por- 30, and the out off mechanism. The-speed tions ofreduced diameter, separate sets of conveyor belts engaging with thereduced diameter portions of said Iowe'rrolls, and

means for guiding material from one set of rolls to the other,independently of the conveyor belts of .the first mentioned rolls.

2. A machine .of the class described, ineluding two spaced pairs ofsuperposed feed rolls, the lower roll of each pair having portions ofreduceddiameter,-separate sets of conveyor belts engaging with thereduced diameter portions of said lowerrolls, and a guide forpreventing-or permitting the ma terial passing from one of said pairs ofrolls to the other.

3. A machine of the class described, including a support upon whichsheet material may be stacked, a conveyor for delivering sheets to saidsupport guide means for controlling the delivery of sheets to saidconveyor, and a pair of cams operatively connected, one cam acting toeffect-a gradual variation in the relative elevations ofsaid support andconveyor, and the other cam operating said guide to permit the deliveryof sheets to said conveyor only during the relative movement of saidsupport and conveyor in one direction.

4. A machine of; the class described, in-

eluding a support upon which sheet material'may be stacked, arolleradjacent to said support, a conveyor belt. extending around saidroller, said roller and support being relatively movable vertically, anda rotatable cam operating during a portion of a revolution tograduallyraise one of them to a height dependent upon the height of the stack tobe piled on said support, and

during. the remainder of the revolution to lower it to startingposition.

- 5. A machine of the class described, hav ing a pair of rollsonearranged above and in advance ofthe other, separate conveyor beltsextending over saidrrolls, means for directing subdivided material toone of said rolls, guiding means, and means for operating the latter todirect aplurality of sheets of material from said first mentioned rollto the second rolland to the conveyor belt of the first mentioned roll,alternately.

,6. A machine of the class described, in-- cluding a pair of superposedIO.lls,-e'ach having portions of reduced diameter, a series of spacedconveyor belts engaging with the lowerroll and guiding means havingportions projecting between said rolls at saidv portions of reduceddiameter and movable to prevent or permit-the conveying of material fromsaid rolls on said belts.

' 7. A machine of the class described, including a pair of superposedrolls, each having portions of reduced diameter, a series of spacedconveyor belts engaging with the lower roll, and a pivoted guidingmember projecting between said rolls and movable to either side of theline of tangency of said rolls to prevent or permit the conveying ofmaterial from said rolls by said belts.

8. A machine of the-class described, including two pairs of feed rollsarranged in succession, a conveyor belt extending around the lower rollof one pair and beneath the.

secondpair, a second conveyor belt extending aroundthe lower roll of thesecond pair and a guide plate pivoted adjacent to the line of tangenc-yof the second mentioned rolls and terminating adjacent to the line oftangency of the first mentioned rolls and having the last mentioned endadjustable to positions above or below the material passing between thefirst mentioned rolls.

9. A machine of the class described, includingtwo pairs of feed rollsarranged in succession, a-conveyor belt extending around the lower rollof one-pair and beneath the second pair, a second conveyor beltextending around the lower roll of the second pair,

i i a guideplate pivoted adjacent to the line oftangencyof the secondmentioned'rolls and terminating adjacent to the line of tangency of thefirst mentioned rolls and having the lastmentioned end adjustable topositions )'above or below the materialpassing between. :thefirstmentioned rolls, and means operating automatically to move said guideplate predetermined intervals.

T 10. A machine of the class described, in

cluding two pairs'of feed rolls arranged in back andI 'forth betweensaid positions at succession, a conveyor belt extending around 'thelower rolLof one pair and beneath the second pair; a secon conveyor belt.extend- 4 ing around the lower roll of the second pair and a guideplate pivoted adjacent to the line of tangency of the second mentionedrolls and terminating adjacent to the line of;

tangency of the first mentioned rolls and having th last mentioned endadjustable to positions above orbelow the material passing-between thefirst mentioned rolls, and

means for shifting said plate at predeter-.

mined intervalsfrom. one position to the veyor belts alternately. Y V11. A machine of the class described, including a pair of supports uponwhich sheet mate: i ll may be stacked, separate conveyors extending 'top nts adjacent to said sup- .other to permit the delivery ofpredetermined quantities of material over said conports, means forraising and lowering'the raised during the lowering movement of theother, and" means for deliveringsheet material to each conveyor duringthe raising movement of the latter.

delivery ends of said conveyors, one being 12) A machine of the classdescribed, in

movement and preventing said deliver'y dur-- ing the lowering movement.

14. A machine of the class rolls, one rotatable about a fixed axis,means for raising and lowering the other roll, a guide for permitting orpreventing the delivery of sheet material to said conveyor belt, andmeans for-shifting the position of said guide each time the direction ofmovement of said second mentioned roll is reversed.

15. Amachine of the class described, in-

eluding a support upon which sheet material.

may be stacked, a vertically movable carriage adjacent thereto, aconveyor belt, a pair of supportlng, rolls therefor, one rotatable abouta fixed. axisand the other mounted on said carriage, guiding meansfogpermitting or preventing the delivery of said described, ineludingan'endless' belt,'a pair of supporting l l i mounted on said carriage,guiding means for permitting or preventing the delivery of sheets tosaid conveyor belt, and a control shaft hav ng-means for raising saidcarriage .during a half revolution of the shaft and lowering it duringthe other half, and means for shifting the position of said guidingmeans .twice during each revolution of the shaft atftime intervalscorresponding to'the reversal of the direction of movement of thecarriage.

' ,rial may be stacked, a vertically movable carriage adjacent thereto,a roller, carried sition.

1 7. A'machine of the class described, including a support upon whichsheet matethereby, a conveyor belt extending around .said roller, and arotatable cam operating 30 during a portion'of a revolution to gradu:ally raisesaid carriage to a height dependent upon the height of thestack to be piled on said 'supportand during the remainder of therevolutionto lower it to starting po- 18. A machine of the-classdescribed,in-

eluding a-pair of'supports upon which sheet material maybe stacked, apair of vertically movable carriages, one mounted adjacent toeach'support, delivery meansffor the sheets, a. pair of conveyors, oneextending from said delivery means to one carriage and the other to theother carriage. and means for guiding the sheets from said deliverymeans to either conveyor, a shaft, and a pair of.

cams thereon for raising and lowering said carriages, the cams being sopositloned as to raise one during the lowering movement of the other.

19. A machine of the class described, including a pair of supports uponwhich sheet material may be stacked, a pair of vertically movablecarriages, one adjacent 'toeach support, conveyors extending to saidcarriages,

a control shaft. a pair of cams on said shaft for raising and loweringsaid carriages, one acting to IBJSQ onecarriage while the other islowering the other carriage, and a third cam on said shaft and acting tocontrol the delivery of sheets to, said conveyors only during the upwardmovement of .the corresponding carriages 20. A machine of the classdescribed, including a support upon which sheets may be stacked, avertically movable carriage adjacent thereto, a pair of stationary rackbars adjacent to opposite ends of said carriage a shaft carried by saidcarriage and-having -pinions meshing with said rack bars, a pair ofrollers carried .by said carriage and between which the sheets aredelivered, and

a conveyor belt extending around the lower a of said rollers.

' 21. A machine of the class described, in- I eluding a support uponwhich sheets may be stacked, a vertically "movablecarriage adja- 'centthereto, a pair of stationary rack bars adjacent to opposite ends of'said carriage, a shaft carried by said carriage and having pinionsmeshing with said rack bars, a roller carried by said carriage-and aconveyor belt extending around said roller and acting to deliver sheetsto the 'top of the:

stack. 22. A machine of the class described, including a support uponwhich sheets maybe stacked, a vertically 1 movable carriage, a'

roller carried thereby, a second roller rota table about a fixeda'xis,-a conveyor belt supported by said rollers, and means secured tothe carriage for automatically maintaining the tension of the beltduring the vertical movement of the carriage.

23. A machine of the classdescr1bed,*including a support upon-whichsheets may be stacked, a vertically movable carriage, a

roller carried thereby, a secondroller rotatable about a fixed axis, aconveyor-belt supported by said rollers, a lever pivoted to saidcarriage, a belt-tightening rollercarried by said lever, and means forswinging" the lever to maintain the" tension of the-belt during thevertical movement of the earriage.

- 24. A machine of the class described, in-

eluding a support upon which sheets may be stacked, a'vertically-movable carriage, a roller carr ed thereby, asecond rollerrota table'about a fixed axis, a conveyor belt sup-.

ported by said rollers, and means for automatically maintaining thetension of thebelt during the vertical movement of the carriage,including a lever pivoted inter-- mediate of its ends on said-carriage,tension means connected to one end of-said lever, and a belt tighteningroller carried by the opposite end of said lever.

25. A machine of the class described, in-

eluding a pair of supports upon which sheet material may be stacked, anddisposed at. different elevations, a pair of vertically movablecarriages, one adjacent to each support, a pair of superposed conveyorbelts,

one extending to one carriage and the other extending above saidcarriage and its corresponding support to the other carriage, means forraising and lowering said carriages alternatelyandmeans for deliveringcessive'sheets are delivered,

sheet material to said conveyor belts alternatelyQ; v

126. A machine of the class described, in; cli 1ding a pair of supportsupon which sheet i5. material 'may, be stacked, and disposed atdifferent elevations, a 'dpair v of ;verticallly "movable carriages, onea jacent toe ach sup- "porg'apair ofsuperposed conveyor belts;onefextending to one carriage andthe other fextendingabove said carriageand its corresponding support to the other carriage, meansforjraisingand lowering said car'- 27.15 machine of the class described?ineluding a support upon which sheet material 'may' be stacked, a'vertically movable carriage. adjacent thereto, .a conveyorbelt extendingto said carriagexforg the delivery of: SIlCCGSSlXG sheets, a stop 7 forpreventing,

' movement of th sheets-acrosssa1dsupport .past -a' predetermined point,andineans for the top of the stack and beneath which suciiaiges'alternately andmeansfor delivering *"sheetymaterial to saidconveyorbelts alter-' i5 na tely, andonly during the upward move Inentof the corresponding carriage.

preventing return movement of the sheets,- i said means '-including vavbrush pivotally' mounted upon thecarriageand resting upon lower saidcarriage,'and the other operating to move said guide.

29. A machine of theclass described, including a support upon whichsheets may'be stacked, a vertically movable carriage adjacent thereto, aroller supported bysaid carriage, a conveyor extending around said].roller, :1 pivoted guide for permitting or preventing the delivery ofsheets to said conveyor, a controlshaft having a pair of cams thereon,one operating to raise and lower said carriage, and the other operatlngto move said.guide, a guide forcontrolling the delivery of sheetsto-saidconveyor, and. Y

a cam operating"in'j synchronisin with the 'first mentioned cam foroperating said guide.

30 eluding a-pair of rollers, a conveyor belt A machine of classdescribed, in-' supported thereby, means for deliverin sheets tosaidbelt adjacent to one of sai rollers, said roller and said deliverymeans I being relatively movable to permit-or pre-" vent said delivery,sheet receiving means 'a'd-" jacent to the other roller, said last men-'tioned roller and said 'last mentioned means,

being relatively movable vertically, and control 'means for preventingdelivery of sheets.

to said conveyor during. relative movement of said receiving means andsaid last m.entfoned roller in one direction, and permitting deliveryduring relative movement in the opposite direction.

den'and State of New J ersey this 13th day ofOctober A. 11.1921. i 4 fBERNARI? VF NE.

l Signed at Camden inthecounty of Cain-

